FIDE, by it own principles, should never have an event for a World Championship in a country that violates norms of international law and human rights. To do so is itself a violation of international law. No human being should be placed in the position of having to choose to protect their rights by avoiding that which they have, in good faith, made their careers and livelihood.
The women who face being forced to comply with Iran's religious code that discriminates both against their religious/personal beliefs and against them because of their sex (men don't have to wear head cover as the women do) must not, as a matter of international law, be placed in such a position by FIDE. What FIDE is allowing and helping the Islamic Republic of Iran, a signatory to the UN Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, do is to destroy the fundamental rights of these women chess players who do not want to wear the hijab. Any of these women or any national chess federation could take FIDE before CAS for monetary and injunctive relief. This is, unfortunately, not an inexpensive process. Any affected national federation could file a complaint with the IOC, with which FIDE has a formal relationship. Those are possible short term solutions.
The long term answer, IMO, is for chess professionals and their federations to unite and form a successor organization to FIDE. If the female and male GMs and IMs, including Carlsen, refuse to play another FIDE sanctioned, game, tournament or match until there is meaningful reform, things would change quite rapidly. If not, they could form a true democratic, transparent organization. But, as NIgel Short pointed out in an interview at the Olympiad, chess players are presently sheep with no backbone to do, not only what's morally right, but what is actually in their long term best interests. Baaaaaaa, Baaaaaaa
Brian Lafferty, Esq.
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